For Los Angeles-based musician, composer and artist Sun Cha, Spanish is a creative goldmine. “One of my favorite Spanish words is 'embriágame,' which I think directly translates to 'get me drunk' or 'get me drunk,'” she says. “I Love this is the word. I think there's a Thalia song that has that word in it, it's called “Piel Morena” and every time she said it I was like…That's it!'”
Sang Cha talks about his latest work “Inebria me” ahead of its release. Premiere in Los Angeles Thursday in REDCAT, inside the Walt Disney Concert Hall complex. “Inebria me” is a 90-minute experimental opera that expands on her critically acclaimed 2019 ranchera-fusion album:Light of Hope” Sun Cha plays Dolores, the demure fiancée of the much wealthier Salvador whose jealousy turns deadly; Enter Esperanza, a genderless spirit of power who helps Dolores light the path to freedom.
Moving away from ranchera singing in Mexico City restaurants experimenting with the underground drag scenes of the Bay Area, Sun Cha has developed a knack for synthesizing disparate influences, resulting in visually captivating and thought-provoking work. San Cha, born Lisette Gutierrez in San Jose to Mexican immigrant parents, grew up compensating for intense Bible study by watching telenovelas after school. This is evident in “Inebria me”, where she uses the classic telenovela narrative structure, but with a strange twist. “I wanted to spend [onto] strangeness [the story] And the religious aspects of it,” she says.
The opera is Sang Cha's latest collaboration. She has previously been linked to many artists, including La Doña, Rafa Esparza, Yesica Salgado and even country singer Kacey Musgraves, who featured Sun Cha in decisive moment from her 2021 visual album”Star Cross” Darian Donovan Thomas also stars in Inebria Me alongside Stefa Marin Alarcón, Lu Coy, Kyle Kidd, Carolina Oliveros and Phong Tran.
In our latest interview, she talks about developing her music for the stage and what it takes to gain the confidence to stand up for your original vision on your own.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Sun Cha performs with Darian Donovan Thomas on September 5 at the Winningstad Theater in Portland, Oregon.
(Jingzi Zhao)
When did you come up with the idea to film Luz de la Esperanza?
It actually came to me in 2023 or 2024 when I partnered with the National Productivity Network for this grant. I began negotiations with the Portland Institute of Contemporary Art, which was already involved in the project, and Performance Space New York. Like, what would I do to adapt this work?
Have you had any experience working in traditional theatre?
No, I didn't do that. And I also haven't watched too many movies. I missed many of those same American events. People asked, “Do you know this movie?” And “It’s like a classic,” and it’s like, “No.” I was really defensive, you know, “I'm here studying the Bible,” kind of crap.
Has anyone in your family seen this piece? If so, what was their feedback?
My parents saw a test version of this piece in San Jose, my hometown. They saw the PG-13 version, and that's what I wanted to say, and my mom was confused; I don't even know how my father felt. My mom's only comment was, “You didn't sing ranchera. Everyone wants you to sing ranchera.” And I thought, “Oh, my God.” So they also came to the final evening in a big group, and at the end I sang ranchera for them.
How would you relate “Inebria me” to what is considered “traditional” opera?
I would say that there is a very clear narrative… everything is sung except the parts. [where] that man [is] talk or talk.
I sing ranchera [and] it kind of merges with the operas. I didn't grow up an opera singer and didn't want to become one, but somehow everything developed in that direction. Here we can be everything: a little hardcore, a little pop, a little opera mix.
Where did the idea of making telenovelas come from?
I wanted to make a telenovela with music. And since I had never seen a weird telenovela… I just thought: I want to make a telenovela and put disco music in it… something electronic, glamorous. This [speaks to] an illusion of glamor under which everything is ugly and perverted.
What was your first memory of watching a telenovela?
There are so many of them. I would watch children's telenovelas. But there's one in particular… it's where Lucero, the big pop star in Mexico, plays three versions of herself, so she's a triplet. And there is one [version] this is so evil. I still remember [the characters] it would be very BDSM…like locking people up! As a child, I had this feeling… “Why am I watching this? I'm a child!”
“I didn’t grow up wanting to be an opera singer, but somehow it all worked out in that direction,” says Sang Cha of “Inebria me.”
(Jingzi Zhao)
You've talked about how important drag queens were, especially early in your career. Queer culture and drag culture, on the one hand, have entered the mainstream of pop and youth culture, but on the other hand remain demonized. How do you combine these two extremes in your work?
I think visibility doesn't always mean safety or acceptance. I remember being in San Francisco and seeing drag that was less polished and more marginalized.
I… kind of hated it when I came to Los Angeles and how perfect everyone there was. But when I saw reruns of RuPaul's Drag Race on VH1, I thought, “This is literally life-changing.” And how great it is that this is becoming mainstream!
In a previous interview you discussed sin and guilt as themes in this work. Many artists have explored this theme in different ways across cultures and times. Why do you think ideas about guilt and sin have such power over us?
You're being forced to do things you don't want to do [people] makes you feel ashamed of the way you act. And in [“Inebria me”]Every sister has a confession, and I wanted to make that the focus—the nun, the religious person.
There's always a priest in telenovelas [they] talk when they have problems, you know? And I think that in [Catholic practice of] confession, it is important to rid yourself of shame and guilt. But it's almost like you're relieving yourself and then you're ashamed, you know? And this is the part that stops growth, evolution and freedom.
For someone whose first impression of “Inebria me” is not for them, what do you think, or what element would they like?
In this work, every star, every diva. I think they're all really brilliant in their own right and they really bring it to the table. Their voices are incredible, as is their stage presence. Perhaps they might like Anthony Robles' stage design – it's very minimalist, but it really helps the space in creating this oppressive world. I think there is something for everyone. This is a story that many people can relate to.
